Australia’s largest event, Vivid Sydney, was awarded Best Tourism Event at the Australian Event Awards on Wednesday night, capping off another impressive year for the festival of light, music and ideas which celebrated its 10th anniversary in 2018.

NSW Minister for Tourism and Major Events Adam Marshall welcomed the accolade and said it was another NSW coup for major events.

“NSW is without doubt Australia’s premier destination for major events and this award demonstrates that the NSW Government’s commitment to presenting a world class calendar of major events is paying dividends,” Marshall said.

“Vivid Sydney is the cherry on the cake when it comes to the NSW events program and it’s become an unmissable experience for Sydneysiders and visitors alike as our capital city is transformed into a kaleidoscope of colour.

“With its three pillars of light, music and ideas there is no doubt that, 10 years strong, Vivid Sydney is one of the most highly anticipated events on the worldwide cultural calendar.”

Owned, managed and produced by Destination NSW, Vivid Sydney has become a hallmark event for the state that has defined Sydney’s cultural identity and completely reinvigorated traditionally quiet Winter trading and tourism periods.

It features three core ‘pillars’:

Vivid Light is a free outdoor event of light art sculptures, installations and grand scale projections on iconic buildings. In 2018 more than 109 installations were enjoyed along a magical 4km ‘light walk’ that wound through The Rocks, along the Harbour Foreshore into the Royal Botanic Garden Sydney and CBD. Vivid Light continued to Barangaroo, and across the Sydney Harbour Bridge to Luna Park Sydney, Taronga Zoo and Chatswood.

Vivid Music offers a program of performances showcasing the best in contemporary and experimental music. Headline acts in 2018 included Ice Cube, Solange, Mazzy Star, St Vincent and Cat Power.

Vivid Ideas brings together the world’s brightest minds, innovators and industry leaders to build engagement between the creative industries sector and the broader economy. The 2018 program of 320 speakers participated in 105 events and was led by the Game Changers: Hollywood director and oceans explorer James Cameron, founder of Mambo, Phantom Records and Deus Ex Machina Dare Jennings, futurists Jane McGonigal and Kriti Sharma, artist and NASA visual strategist Dan Goods.

The Australian Event Awards and Symposium is the national awards program and conference for the Australian events industry, fostering continued excellence, innovation and unity. A list of 2018 winners can be found at www.eventawards.com.au/results.